Raven, Tantei kun?
by TeahTheFoxLover
Summary: AU for Magician of the Silver Sky. Formerly Oneshot, now a story. That night, the night of the heist, Kaito thought Tantei-kun would die. Instead, he didn't fall, didn't plummet, just hovered in the air, carried by those black wings.
1. Raven Wings

_It was a conspiracy, I tell you! They attacked me in my weakest moment when I contemplated what to do to avoid studying and suddenly I found myself in front of my computer with a half-finished story going on! And it couldn't even be a short drabble like I wanted, it just HAD to develop into an oneshot -_-" Curse you, stupid plotbunnies!_

_My first DC fanfic, and I'm going for the wings *sighs* Well what can ya do, I'm obsessed with them xD Only regret is I couldn't make it more Kaishin, but Kaito DID call Shin-chan HIS Tantei-kun, so I guess all is rght in the world n_n_

**Title:** Raven, Tantei-kun?  
**Author:** Teah no kitsune  
**Disclaimer**: Not owning Detective Conan/Case Closed. Nuh-uh. This goes for the remainder of the story, btw.  
**Warnings:** None I guess, if you don't count the slight mention of blood

* * *

The hang-glider enlarged itself as soon as Kaito's hand triggered the switch. A final leap over the ledge to gain momentum, and not a moment later the thief was plummeting fast to the ground below, violet eyes fixed on the small body of the detective that was falling through the air.

Dammit, nobody got hurt on his heists, especially not his favorite Tantei-kun!

He reached a hand out to grab the not-child, but several things happened at once, none of them what either teen (or teen in the body of a child) expected. As Tantei-kun reached his own hand out, the light reflected off his dart-watch, causing Kaito's dodging reflex to kick in. He twitched only slightly, an automatic reaction, and while it normally wouldn't even have been noticeable, on his hang-glider in the air it caused an up-draft to hit him and pull him up.

His hand grasped for the one not even an inch away from his, but his fingers only slightly brushed a wrist before he was up in the air again, flying away from the detective. A shocked expression fell over both of their faces, Kaito's poker-face momentarily shattered, before Kudo's eyes hardened in determination and acceptance, as if he had to make a difficult decision and had finally come to terms with his choice.

He gave a silent nod at Kaito, for what he wasn't sure, and mouthed one last word to him before twisting around, head towards the earth, hands wide open at both sides.

Kaito tried to twist the glider, to turn around, to do something, because he _couldn't let Kudo die, dammit!_ But his glider wouldn't obey, the draft he picked up being too strong to fight against it. He watched helplessly as the detective plummeted down, down below, his face embedded in his memory, the expression of concentration and pain evident to Kaito's excellent night-vision.

He watched him shut his eyes in pain.

His mouth twist open in a pained cry.

His hands ball into fists and his body move into a fetal position as the ground neared ever the closer.

He almost shut his eyes as to not witness the tragedy that was about to happen, but they determinedly remained open, following the last command the not-child would have ever given him.

'_Watch.'_

And what happened next made Kaito infinitely glad he decided to do so, because he wasn't sure he would have ever believed it if he hadn't seen it with his very own two eyes.

In an explosion of feathers and black and sparkles (or maybe it was black feathers and blood splatters glinting in the moonlight, Kaito wasn't sure) and suddenly his Tantei-kun wasn't so much plummeting helplessly to the pavement below as letting himself fall. Body twisting in the air, one flap, two flaps of those majestic dark appendages and he was only hovering there in the air, looking down below with a neutral face.

Briefly Kaito realized that not once did the detective, not even when he was desperately reaching for Kaito's hand, show any sign of fear. Urgency and shock, yes, but any sign of fear was absolutely absent, as if he belonged there, as if the sky itself was his refuge instead of demise, and now he understood why. It reminded the thief briefly of himself, and yet it was so much more than he would ever be able to understand.

Tantei-kun's eyes left the ground below and met Kaito's own violet gaze, so far away by now but not any less intense. Another flap of his wings, the appendages spanning at least thrice the length of his seven-year-old body, and he was hurtling towards the hang-glider at speeds the thief could only dream of ever achieving.

Kaito didn't try to escape, he didn't even try to change his path. There was no point in running when you were facing a creature such as this. And really, Kudo was at an advantage right now, he hated to admit. The sky wasn't Kid's territory anymore it seemed, but this ultimate predator's one behind him.

He turned his head back to the front, watching his path and keeping the hang-glider steady. He wasn't afraid, he knew Tantei-kun would never hurt anyone that didn't make the first step and somehow he doubted the Kid went into that category, with his non-violence policy and the rival-acquaintance thing going on. Also, he trusted Tantei-kun would enlighten him on his feathery problem soon enough. He just seemed the type of person that didn't like people making up false accusations and getting the wrong picture. His detective side simply wouldn't allow for it.

He was proven right on his assumption not a moment later. It came with a barely audible flap of wings above him and the slight tip of his hang-glider to the side. A feather fell spinning from overhead and Kaito automatically caught it, observing it.

It was larger than an usual bird's one, with a purely black sheen to it, like a raven's. There were a few splatters of dark liquid on it, and as Kaito dragged his finger over them, the liquid getting absorbed into the white fabric of his gloves, he realized it was blood. So the appendages really did grow out of flesh and bone then.

Pulling his gaze away from the feather, he looked up, up above his hang-glider, and found Tantei-kun's face peering over it, his hands holding the tip and directing it to a nearby construction site. His face was closed off, un-caring and neutral to most people, but Kaito wasn't most people. He could see the slight worry and apprehension swimming in those blue pools watching the feather in his hand.

'_He's worried about my reaction to his secret,'_ Kaito mused. _'He thinks I'll reject him for it.'_ Well, no need to worry about that, because Kaito wasn't going to run away screaming his head off like a frightened chicken. Kid strived on challenges and mysteries, and if anything, it only made the not-child all the more intriguing to the thief.

So, it was with a mischievous smirk rather than a frightened grimace that he met Tantei-kun's gaze head-on and held the feather mockingly between two fingers.

"Raven, Tantei-kun? Why doesn't that surprise me?"

And the relieved glare he received left him wondering whether he should chuckle at the sight of the indignant expression or gulp remembering he was at this creature's mercy.

In the end he simply decided to forgo all logic and common sense _and_ possibly put himself at Death's Door by saying those final words.

"Feathers ruffled much?"

The trip to the construction site was one Kaito would never forget. Ever.

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_Like? Don't like? Please review!_

**_EDIT: _**_Formerly an oneshot, now a story. After five whole months ^^; Yeah, sorry about that, had to find a good plot and the time and so on. Also, the other chapters may seem different, since this one was a I'll-quickly-write-this-oneshot-so-I-get-it-off-my-mind sort, while the other were the I-gotta-write-good-quality-chapters-with-a-plot-and-a-whole-lot-of-other-things sort of chapter. Sorry about that, but I sure hope you enjoy it ^^_

_Also, did a few minor corrections, like 'tantei-kun' and some 'Kudo' becoming 'Tantei-kun'.  
_


	2. Musings

_**A/N:** Err… I know it's been months since I promised this, and I'm really sorry for not posting it sooner, but I just didn't have the time. Don't get me wrong, I did write occasionally, but with my losing the first script, which was over one third of the chapter, I had a bit of a writer's block when it came to paper. And with my mom lurking around and chasing me off the computer every time she saw me, I couldn't exactly find the time to do it. -.- Oh, how I long for the day when I get my own laptop…_

_Anyway, here's Chapter 2! :D Mind you, it's just an introductory chapter to the simple plot of the story, and I'm sure by the end of it you'll have a general feeling of what the next chapter will entail, but bear with me trying to make this a good quality fic with more than just 1000 words per chapter. And I dedicate this chapter to Alice-chan, who was so kind as to beta it and find a lot of mistakes that sure would have diminished your fun while reading this :)  
_

**Title:** Raven, Tantei-kun?  
**Author:** Teah no kitsune  
**Warnings:** Angst on Shin-chan's part, again small mention of blood

_

* * *

_**Chapter 2: Musings

* * *

**

The creaking sound of the window pane opening was a large contrast to the eerily silent atmosphere of the house. Kaito winced at the echoing noise, the sound his feet made touching the hallway floor barely audible. He closed it again in one swift move followed by a much shorter creak, and vowed to fix it as soon as possible. That meaning after he got some sleep, because the constant alertness and still fresh happenings of the last few days were finally catching up to him, demanding he lay down _right that instant_ and give his body its much deserved sleep.

Treading step by silent step down the dark hallway only lit by the soft glow of moonlight peeking through the window he just entered through, he made sure to linger a moment or two longer by a slightly ajar door. His breath was caught for that short amount of time, his ears hyper-sensitive against every sound around him, listening for any sign of awakening souls residing behind it. Only when his ears were met by methodical, slow breathing, unbroken by his louder than normal entrance to the house, only then did he let out a relieved puff of air. Quietly, his hand reached for the knob and closed the door to his mother's room completely.

_The stillness of the night was broken by the light flutter of cloth and wings.__ Two sets of feet landed with barely a sound on the concrete of the construction site's rooftop. A white cape billowed in the wind as the hang-glider collapsed back into its original state._

His continued trek led him past the stairway (really, entering through the front door was overrated, and overly predictable for any lurking entities nearby, especially if they had a thing for cosplaying as Sherlock Holmes) and past his own room, to which he almost gave another sigh, this time in regret. Oh, how he wished he could just throw himself in the warm folds of his blanket and fall asleep then and there… But he knew better than that, and in his line of night-work, precautions were what was asked for every second of it.

He would first have to make a small detour to the rec-room's 'adjacent room' and get rid of a few of the more incriminating pieces of evidence, like the white suit he carried in his duffel bag and the numerous gadgets he still held concealed beneath the clothes of his latest disguise.

As said before: Precautions, precautions.

_The thief admired the way the feathers lightly swayed in the strong wind of the rooftop. The abandoned construction site the other had chosen was of a mostly finished skyscraper, yet still lacking some fundamental things, like paint and people to inhabit it. Perfect for a secret meeting like this one._

_His own cape had wound around his form tightly, enveloping and giving him a more demented, yet more humble look than normal. Those appendages, however… They stayed strong, refusing to give in to the tide and curling almost protectively around its bearer in an arc, half concealing him from the magician's view._

Simply depositing the bag on the floor of the small windowless room seemed at that moment like a much better idea than busying himself by putting everything in its original place one by one, the call for sleep already making his movements more sluggish and slow. He quickly rid himself of the many additions he still carried on his person and tiredly made his way to his room, steps still silent and careful in the dark house.

Truthfully, he hadn't planned on making it home this late in the night, but with his flight being delayed and part of the airport still closed because of renovations (he still cringed remembering _that_ incident), it couldn't be helped. He was sure his mother would understand though, even if 'visiting Jii-chan in Sendai' would fail to explain his late return. He could always say he got held up somehow. She would understand.

She always did.

_The not-child in question was turned away from him, having landed a fair distance away after depositing him and his hang-glider on the flat surface. He stood there, not making any move to turn around, as if to give him time and space on the off-chance he still decided to make a run for it._

_Kaito wasn't having any of it, however, as his violet eyes, shadowed by the rim of his top-hat in the moonlight overhead, continued to observe the small figure protectively encircled by two much larger ones. Waiting a moment or two, the small feet of his counterpart stepped forward, away from him, slowly making their way to the edge of the roof._

He entered his room with the same cautiousness as within the rest of the house, his feet expertly avoiding the pile of books he knew was positioned right next to his door.

Unlike what most people thought, Kaito wasn't a messy person, nor an overly unorganized one (how would he be able to even plan his heists if he were one?), he just had a… specific sense of organization. It was true his room appeared untidy (more like a bomb exploded in it) to most anyone that cared to take a look in it, but Kaito always knew where he left his things, and which of the 'piles of what-not', as Aoko had called them, were more important than others. Not even his mother entered the room to tidy it up anymore, knowing it appeared to be more than it was. Only Aoko ever cared to shuffle the things out of the way, and even then her attempts had decreased a lot after she got a handful of confetti in her face that one time she'd messed with the wrong 'pile of what-not'.

The soft_ click_ of the door falling shut was closely followed by an almost audible sigh of relief, Kaito's straight back finally losing some of its invisible tenseness and shoulders slumping forward ever so slightly. His legs automatically carried him to the adjacent bathroom, his body set in the familiar routine that he'd missed so much these days, as he let his mind wander.

_Even turned away, hiding behind that dark veil of feathers, the thief could just imagine those haunted eyes gazing indifferently at the city life below. Faintly, the thought that no one, none of the nameless faces below, would probably ever know of this meeting nor of this conversation ever taking place, rung through his head._

_He stood there, the wind howling in his ears, cape winding around him, mind running through endless theories of such a possibility existing (and, excluding a meeting with the resident witch, which he honestly doubted, unsurprisingly coming up blank), and waited for the not-child to start._

The teen gave a soft sigh as his face met the _heavenly_ soft pillow on his bed, his body already shutting down in its dire need for sleep. With one hand he grabbed said pillow, tiredly fluffing it up as the other one sluggishly reached for the blanket neatly folded at the foot of the bed and threw it over himself.

_And waited. Really, he was starting to get cold at the high altitude! Love for high places he may have, but that didn't include the cold that came with being too still for too long. Neither Kaito nor Kaitou Kid were prone to standing still for any amount of time, especially not for small detectives._

_But said small detective seemed lost in thought, still leisurely standing at the edge of the building, still absent-mindedly gazing down below, still with a posture unmoving and slumped. It was for all of the world as if he had completely forgotten about the magician even being there._

_And Kaitou Kid didn't do well when not paid attention to. So he made the first move._

Yet his mind refused to rest. It didn't matter _how_ many times he tossed or turned, his body restless for its inability to settle for the night, he just couldn't bring himself to that blissful state of tranquility and half-awareness.

"_Tantei-kun… What _are_ you?"_

No. Not with that meeting, that _night_ still on his mind, unprocessed and buried deep in order to function normally during the remainder of the heist.

_A small twitch in the shoulder blades, magnified by the small flap of the wings, indicated his question had come across, despite the strong wind and traffic noise all around muffling it. It was almost as if the boy was surprised he was still there, still waiting, still demanding answers and still standing tall without a need to run._

These last few days had been unpredictable at best and downright nerve-wracking at worst. Every miniscule part of the heist had to be planned, every possible deviation taken into consideration and every bit of information he'd managed to get on Kudo Shinichi perfectly utilized. That last part had mostly depended on sheer luck and similarities between Kudo's behavior and his own. Well, his behavior _before_ encountering his 'small' problem.

Taking into account the… _surprising_ discovery he'd made about Tantei-kun, the random murder on the plane (one of many that seemed to follow the detective around it seemed), the poisoning and abrupt need of a replacement pilot and co-pilot (thank god his dad deemed it necessary for him to learn how to operate a plane on their vacation to Hawaii when he was a kid)… well, you could say he needed all his nerves and thoughts strictly concentrated to the task at hand, namely getting a plane full of people to the relative safety of firm ground below.

Now, after all the euphoria and adrenaline rush had finally left his system, now that he was finally left with a clear head to think and calmly go over the last few days properly and critically, only now was the full impact, the full life-altering seriousness of the discovery he had made able to ring through his head.

Wings.

He could still remember that anguished look of resignation, and of equal determination, as Tantei-kun, that great mind trapped within the helpless body of a child, had plummeted to the pavement below, the distance between their two out-stretched arms increasing rapidly with each passing second.

_Wings._

Kudo- no, _Tantei-kun _(he couldn't let himself get familiar with him on more than the usual rival-acquaintance basis, that was just a big 'No no') had almost died that day, had almost become a small dark-red speck on the pavement below, had almost lost his life because he couldn't have controlled his instinctive reactions for _one god damn second_, couldn't have reached his hand _one bit further_ for the elusive child-sized one of his rival…

_**Wings.**_

But then… he hadn't.

…Hadn't hit the ground, hadn't impacted, hadn't _fallen at all_—He'd just… hovered there, in the air, calm as if he belonged there all along, suspended by those, those…

And suddenly, wide awake as a mentally exhausted night-time gentleman thief could only get after so many days spent hyper-aware, he made the realization that was probably _long_ due.

_'Dear kami, Tantei-kun had sprouted wings from his back!'_

A breathless chuckle escaped him, disbelief showing clearly through as he now stared, eyes fully opened and no longer able to sleep, at the dark ceiling above him. The possibility, the sheer _percentage_ of something like _that_ happening…

Hell, this was Kudo Shinichi he was talking about – cold-facts, firm-on-the-ground (hah!) detective geek Kudo Shinichi, with not an ounce of sense for the illogical and supernatural. Yet, to Kaito's growing amusement, slowly penetrating through the thick haze of shock he'd just experienced, the detective's entire _being_ was the perfect example of everything abnormal and illogical.

Trouble seemed to just find the guy on every corner he made. Really, to not only be a living biological anomaly with a lack of ten years aging sprung from who-knows-what (Kaito was still debating about that, though he suspected it had something to do with the equally not-so-young ojou-chan that sometimes trailed after him), but to not be human _at all_…

_'Trouble always seemed to find him…'_

Vacant eyes blinked at the ceiling.

_'Whether he wants it or not.'_

A flash of that expression, so young and vulnerable in that one fleeting moment before a mask of impassiveness had taken over again; blue eyes reflecting fear, fear of _being feared_, before they had hardened into ice chips, tucking those too revealing feelings beneath the dimmed surface that had steadily gazed at him over the tip of the white hang-glider…

Frowning, he stuck an arm out in the direction of the nightstand, his fingers scrambling in the dark for the target they sought after. His tired body protested the movement, but Kaito ignored it as his mind ran over those words again and again.

It seemed there was much more beneath the surface of that child-teen-_whatever_, than anyone had thought before.

_Shifting slightly, one wing drew back a bit, still arcing around the small form yet now giving him a limited view of the expressionless face, with the moonlight reflected off those glasses, much like his own monocle, not making it any easier for the thief to read it._

_He felt frustrated._

_And suddenly the magician felt as if he'd been swept up by a vertigo and deposited on the wrong side of the deal. Looking at the mysterious and almost unpredictable, almost wild entity before him, for the first time ever he felt like one of his chasers might feel when pursuing a phantom that was unattainable, unreachable to those bound tight to the ground, wings clipped and unable to give chase any further._

_Well, crap. That was just depressing._

His fingers closed around their target, his arm going limp with the accomplishment. He just rested it there for a moment, reassuring himself that what he witnessed, what he had _heard_ was not just a part of his imagination.

Because…

_A bitter smile crossed those lips._

_And he spoke._

There was much _much_ more than anyone had thought.

_"I don't know," was the simple answer. He shrugged as if to make the words more nonchalant, and the wings flapped in response to the movement. Blue eyes trailed over his movements watchfully, as if waiting for a reaction (A flinch? An expression of fear?) before looking into the distance again. "Demon, hellspawn, shinigami, monster, freak… nobody really knows. …Or wants to know, for that matter. Some mysteries are better left untouched after all."_

Was that… Was that really what Tantei-kun thought of himself?

_A long moment passed, too short for the thief to make a proper response when faced with such a case of self-revulsion (or perhaps the revulsion of the unexplainable part of himself?), before the not-child abruptly turned on his heel, the wings following the movement elegantly and stretching out to their full length behind him as the momentum decreased. They flapped with an audible snap, and a strangely bright and entirely displaced smile suddenly adorned his face._

He brought his hand to himself, fingers stroking the item within it almost caringly.

_"What do you, Kaitou Kid-san," he asked with another flap and an eyebrow raised in false amusement. His voice was loud and forcibly cheerful. "think I am?"_

And as he lay there in his room stroking the dark feather he'd acquired that night, as the waning moonlight outside was slowly being replaced by the warm feel of the breaking sun, the teen thought of those words, of those gestures and those momentary emotions again and again, his resolve steadying with every passing second of it.

Grunting, he pulled himself up to lay on his stomach, elbows propping up to gently hold the feather over the edge of the bed, in the growing light streaking through the window blinds. It was purely black, almost shimmering in the weak sunlight, the color darkening only on the parts still covered by what he knew was blood. Those parts, unlike the rest of the feather that seemed almost soft despite its stiffness, those parts seemed like they were spiked sharply, dried as the blood on them was.

Tantei-kun had seemed entirely too sad that night.

Like him, all those years ago. Like Aoko, on that night when she received the call.

_A chuckle filled the air, any amusement behind it as fake as the indifferent stare of the magician receiving it. The wind howled, and he strained to hear the sound._

And Kaito vowed to never be that sad again, or see another person feeling like that again.

_The sound of wings wrapping tightly around a body met his ears, and his shocked gaze, hidden by his poker-face, refocused on the not-child standing on the edge of the roof once again._

A small fluttering feeling made itself known from the pit of his stomach, growing steadily in synch with the smile on his lips. His hand closed around the feather, clutching it tightly and ignoring the slight prick it gave as the sharpened parts of it pierced his skin. His elbows, which he had used to prop himself up, gave under the exhaustion and let his chest collide with the mattress abruptly.

_"Hn."_

By now, it was a full blown grin that was almost splitting his face in two, his eyes half-closing as his mind was finally at peace, finally finding a resolve he'd act upon as soon as he was physically ready.

_And with a small jump backwards, he was gone, leaving only a gentleman thief tightly enveloped by his cloak on the deserted construction site's rooftop, giving him much to think, yet little time to process it._

Plans needed to be made, proper excuses thought of, disguises chosen and daily schedules of shrunken detectives acquired.

_And soon the stage was deserted completely, bereft of both of its actors. The first act was finished, and it was time to start a new one. One that would lead to many, many more._

Because… Because Kaito planned to have the small detective rid himself of that revulsion, that sadness, that loneliness that came with being the bearer of that over-helming secret that shouldn't, _couldn't_ be shared with anyone else. He wasn't alone, not anymore, because Kaito now knew too.

And he was damn well going to impart it on the kid to stop angsting over himself and enjoy life more the way it presented itself to him. That he promised.

And as he drifted off into sleep, the too large to be normal dark feather still clutched in his hand, his last words before he succumbed drifted through the silent bedroom, and into the new morning.

He hadn't known then, but he knew it now.

"An angel, a fallen angel. That's what you are."

* * *

_**A/N:** I had problems writing the first part, but the last part I enjoyed SO much *snickers* Pity this isn't KaiShin, but as mentioned before *eyes Ran evilly*, as this is a Movie 8 AU, such a thing is simply not possible *sighs* Oh well. I'll make it a close friendship, but romance, as I discovered, isn't my thing to write. *still blushes remembering the first and only french kiss scene she wrote.* _

_Next chapter should be up in maximum two weeks, because this one is so full of tests and examinations that I doubt the number can be counted on two hands ^^;_

_Oh, and review please! I want to know what you think of it. I live off reviews, the more I get, the more I feel motivated to bring the next chapter to you! n_n_

**Next up: **Conan goes through aforementioned daily schedule, only to find out he's being followed in the most peculiar of ways. XD


	3. Freedom

_**A/N:** This chapter was supposed to summarize his whole day, but as the length of it grew longer and longer, I decided to split it in two parts. So, the teaser from the last chapter doesn't exactly apply to this, but still... the day has just begun :)_

**Title:** Raven, Tantei-kun?  
**Author:** Teah no kitsune  
**Warnings:** None, I guess.

_

* * *

_**Chapter 3: Freedom**

* * *

That morning, when Conan awoke, it was to the same feeling as every morning before, ever since the Jewel of Destiny Kid heist.

Stiff and with a sharp pain in his back, in the space right between his shoulder-blades.

Tiredly and most unwillingly, the dark-haired boy opened his eyes to glare at the world, the small eye-bags beneath them clear evidence to just how many hours of peaceful sleep he'd gotten the past week. He half-heartedly looked around himself, taking in his surroundings.

Light was peeking through the blind-folds of the only window in the tiny room, the rays congregating at the wooden surface of the closed door and thankfully not yet near to aggravating Conan's eyes. Outside, birds chirped, car horns blared and good-spirited customers chatted loudly in the café two stories below. He could also hear light footsteps from the kitchen, as well as various sounds of clinking of various pots and pans, indicating Ran was already up and preparing breakfast for the other two occupants of the small apartment.

The calm atmosphere and seemingly hypnotic sounds were almost peaceful enough for Conan to easily fall back asleep, even with the throbbing pain still present.

That is, if it weren't for one thing.

Kogoro, the Sleeping Engine.

Or that was at least the name Conan had privately dubbed him with, after seeing just how much alcohol the man could consume without knocking himself out. And let it not be said the stuff was going to waste. Oh no, it certainly served a purpose, as Conan had soon found out on the first night at the agency – it fired up Kogoro's snoring through the whole night. Add some beer, and you got a snoring engine from the moment he collapsed onto the bed, to the early hours of the morning. And Conan, with his sensitive hearing and recently acquired paranoid state that required him to jump awake at every miniscule sound disrupting his sleep, found it highly irritating.

Not to mention the smell of the stuff (didn't he ever clean up after himself?). It took him three days to suppress the urge to sneeze every time he even entered the room, his nose simply not able to withstand that amount of concentration in one place. Even now, as he wrinkled his nose, he reigned in the urge, if only to prevent Ran from suddenly popping into the room, looking at him with those worried eyes once again and finally finding enough reasons to not send him to school today as well.

She'd been worried ever since the almost-plane-crash in Hakodate, when Conan had accidentally slipped that he hadn't been seated and secured with a belt at the time. She had scolded Conan so much that the boy thought she would give him a karate-kick for good measure, but instead she had collapsed in front of him and engulfed him in a hug, crying and saying how afraid she had been for him.

And it was also at that time, in that specific hug, that she found out just how incredibly sore he'd been (still was), if his sudden stiffness and muffled yelp had been any indication. Of course, Conan wouldn't let her know where the soreness originated, or how he even acquired it, so Ran took the initiative and forbade him any escapades out of the apartment above the agency, as well as any extensive work around the house (which basically amounted to not even being allowed to lift a glass by himself).

Kogoro had, of course, objected to the freeloader getting special treatment, and Conan had, of course, objected to being treated like expensive porcelain for no apparent reason other than a slight soreness. And then Ran had, of course, helpfully reminded them of the true man (or should he say 'woman'?) of the house by making a nice fist-sized hole in the wall connecting the kitchen and living room. Even now, a week later, that hole still remained there in the wall, reminding them all through every meal just _how_ futile it is to try crossing Ran.

The kids had 'ohh'ed and 'ahh'ed at it the one time they'd come over, looking at Ran with admiration in their eyes and completely ignoring Conan's confined state that was the result of it. Well, Haibara hadn't ignored him. She'd given him _the smirk_, like the devil she was.

Sonoko had simply whistled in amazement at the wall, commenting how Shinichi would have a hard time as her husband. He hadn't needed to be reminded.

And he could just imagine Heiji's jabs at him about liking to be taught his place by bossy women. Like he was one to speak. The Osakan got whipped more times daily than he did in an entire month, after all.

Seeing as burying his face under the pillow did no good to ignore the Sleeping Engine, Conan stuck his head out, a small annoyed growl rising in his throat as he tossed it aside. He immediately hissed at the pain it brought, but shook the pain off quickly, ready for another day. No point in trying to sleep when that man was tearing the house down with the noise.

He took his time getting up, his back aching with every move his body, and especially his arms, made. Even after a whole week, the pain had barely lessened. Conan didn't remember it being so painful the first time around.

Then again, the first sprouting had been when he was thirteen years old.

_Excitement, shock, resignation, a will to live… It didn't matter if he __saw; he could feel the sensation of them wanting to come out, to take him to the heavens…_

'_Don't think about it.' _ He reprimanded himself and shook his head.

Despite his usual persistence at wearing more formal clothing to school (ever since he'd outgrown his old grade-school uniform from a year ago), he went for a loose white T-shirt and knee-length khaki pants today, wanting to avoid any kind of strain on his back. He left the tiny room containing a still knocked-out Kogoro with great relief on his face, his nose glad for the change from alcoholic sour to the sweetness that was undoubtedly Ran's cooking.

The sound of his small footsteps was muffled by the thin carpet and his socks, literally noiseless to anyone not looking specifically for it, so it didn't really come as a surprise to have Ran almost running into him as he turned a corner in the small apartment.

The teen blinked at Conan, surprised to see him so early out of bed, but she composed herself quickly.

"Oh, ohayo Conan-kun!" She smiled, and Conan felt his bad mood almost lighten at the sight of it. "I was just going to wake you up. Go to the bathroom while I wake dad up, okay? Breakfast is ready."

"Un!" He smiled back boyishly, his body automatically switching to full 'Conan mode' as he slipped past her in a childish run for the bathroom.

Some days he wondered if he, when (not 'if') he finally found a way to return to his old teenage self, would inevitably retain some of his 'Conan' traits. He inwardly cringed at the thought of skipping excitedly to lend Ran a random object, or worse, calling Sonoko 'nee-chan' by accident.

He would never live it down.

After Ran got Kogoro properly out of bed, breakfast was a mostly normal affair. Kogoro, who had been grumbling the whole way about being woken up at the early hour, turned up surprisingly reserved at the meal. It was probably because of an aforementioned fist-sized hole glaring at him from the nearby wall.

Ran had shot Conan several concerned looks when she thought he wasn't looking, but the boy done his best to look relaxed and beyond ready to see the light of day again after the week's worth of house-arrest, instead of needing to be bed-ridden some more. After the table had been cleared, the dishes washed and Kogoro deposited at his desk with a stack of beer, Ran finally gave up pretending and knelt by Conan's side, her eyes as equally concerned as a week ago.

"Conan-kun, are you sure you want to do this? I could tell the teacher you didn't quite yet recover, you know. You don't have to strain yourself too much too early, especially if your body still hurts from the whiplash…"

Conan took a deep breath through his nose, willing his posture to relax and his shoulders to slump despite the pain the movement caused. He had to do this. He didn't think he'd survive another day confined to an enclosed space like this.

This called for some drastic measures.

He pouted, appearing annoyed, and replied in the best whiny, childish voice he could manage without feeling _too_ mortified. "I'm _fine_, Ran-neechan! I don't hurt anymore and I _really_ want to go out and play with my friends!"

The sentence seemed to bring a smile on her face, making Conan immensely glad he hadn't just wasted his male pride _whining _for naught. He blinked as a hand was brought up to ruffle his hair. The not-child fended it off with a small glare, patting his hair back down to its usual cow-lick that only he could manage.

"Ran-neechan!"

"Gomen, gomen, Conan-kun, I just couldn't resist." She giggled at his indignant response, standing up to her full height once more. "Well then, are you ready to go to school? It's almost time."

The boy nodded, checking his watch for the time. They still had enough time to walk slowly before going their respective ways, and even then he'd probably get to school ahead of time. Good.

He caught the troubled look in her eyes just before he turned away, heading for his schoolbag. For that one fleeting moment of time turned away from her, his childish smile turned slightly sorrowful. _'I'm sorry for worrying you, Ran. But being indoors so much, it makes me feel like some caged-" _

_A flash of white, a gleaming monocle, a ston__y face, bloody feather in hand-_

'_Ugh, STOP thinking about it!" _He shook his head as he edged around the couch, partially out of Ran's view. _'I don't want… don't want anyone… it wasn't supposed…'_

And as he came face to face (well, cloth) with the front of his schoolbag, he became aware of another problem he hadn't thought of. _'Oh Hell, I am NOT carrying that on my back.'_

He couldn't even imagine putting it on, never mind actually carrying it. The pain it would bring…

But if he didn't put it on, then Ran would get suspicious and he'd never get out of there because the girl would lock him in the apartment again (she was that cruel, yes). Maybe he could still endure it, even though he was sure he would pass out after only a short time of carrying it…

"Conan-kun?" Ran asked.

He shot her a wide-eyed look over his shoulder, the perfect picture of-caught-in-a-cookie-jar expression on his face. She merely smiled with a knowing, almost sad tint to it though, before brandishing a small gray child-sized schoolbag from behind her back. It was a fairly normal one, only instead of having two straps it had just one that went over a shoulder, much like a purse.

He took it tentatively from her hands, giving her a confused look. She just offered a smile in reply before going back to her room, probably to grab her own bag. Conan had a distinct feeling that perhaps she knew more than she let on, but shook it off in favour of switching his things from his old bag to the new one. He wasn't going to look a gift-horse in the mouth.

Just as he finished putting the last book in, Ran popped out of her room again.

"Ready?" she asked.

"Hai!"

Their walk together was nothing special, both of them just happy to be either outside or going to school in the other's company after so much time. Conan soon parted ways with her, his school in a separate direction than hers, and walked on ahead by himself. As he wandered down the sidewalk, the city area steadily declining to a more rural part where traffic was sparser and lush green trees took over glaring traffic lights, he briefly closed his eyes, taking in all the joys of being _free_ again.

The new bag really did help. Aside from the minute throbs he had from flexing his muscles while walking, the pain was otherwise kept at a minimum.

Step by step his mind slowly acquainted itself with the familiar route once again, and he revelled in the feel of the sunshine warming his skin, the scent of freshly cut grass from nearby family backyards filling his lungs, and the faint breeze in the air ruffling his hair up. For a moment, the breeze got stronger…

_The feel of the strong wind beating against his… He gritted his teeth, wishing they weren't there… What does he think of him now, when the tables have turned? He didn't want to know, didn't want anyone to know… It's a curse-_

A sharp sensation, a nauseating feeling usually kept in the back of his mind, suddenly flowed through his whole being, making him feel almost light-headed. It came with a sense of alarm, warning him and screaming that someone was _watching him_. His whole posture suddenly stiffened and, ignoring the pain in his back, his eyes started darting around frantically. Nothing here…

A loud flutter of wings caused him to jerk around, hand coming up in front of his face to protect him from any face injury if the attacker decided on a physical confrontation, or identification should one of the organization members be on his case…

He'd turned around just enough to see a grey bird fly out of his sight. Looking around with narrowed eyes, trying to discern the position of his possible pursuer yet coming up blank, he slowly lowered his hand back to his side. The feeling was starting to fade, as if the danger had passed. He stood there on the sidewalk, his euphoria from before completely broken as he mulled over this newest development.

Even though the alarm faded away into a small tingling sensation in the back of his head (probably the product of people staring at him for his odd behaviour), he still couldn't shake off the foreboding sense that something was going to… happen.

And yet he felt no dread, no fear of being discovered that he usually associated with the Black organization. Just… a feeling.

"Conan-kuuuun!"

He started, turning in the direction of the shrill voice. A small group of children was hurrying to catch up to him, a small not-child following them in their wake. He blinked one time, two times at the abrupt change from possible danger to incoming grade-schoolers, and skilfully shook off the feeling in favour of slipping into his 'Conan mode' ,just enough to not worry them if they saw anything conspicuous. He would deal with it later.

Somehow, during his imprisonment under Ran's care, he'd missed them too.

"Conan-kun, you're going back to school today? Why didn't you tell us?" Ayumi pouted as they all settled to walk beside him.

The boy in question pasted a small apologizing smile on his face, his whole posture slumping slightly to accommodate the 'guilty person' air around him. "Ah, gomen, I didn't know if Ran-neechan would really let me go, so I didn't want to give you any false hope."

The excuse seemed to work, as they had all seen Ran back when they'd visited, in all her big-sister-takes-care-of-little-brother glory.

"She's really protective over you, isn't she?" Genta piped up. "When we came over, it looked more like she was taking care of a baby than you!" He snickered and elbowed Conan light-heartedly.

The other kids (except Ai of course) joined in the laughter, leaving poor Conan to glare at them in annoyance. He'd managed to conceal his wince at Genta's unintentionally painful jab in his side and decided that keeping a happy mask up for them simply wasn't worth his time.

"Hey, Conan-kun," Mitsuhiko asked suddenly. "How come you have a new bag? And it's not a standard one either!"

"Really?" Ayumi wondered, only now noticing the new grey bag slung over Conan's shoulders. "Oh wow, it's true! I thought we all had to wear standard bags to school!"

The not-child shifted somewhat awkwardly. "...Yeah, Ran-neechan gave it to me this morning. I think she's still on about me being sick and hurting." _'Don't know why, since I was trying to avoid her seeing me in any kind of pain the entire week.'_

"And are you?" Ai inquired, suddenly joining the conversation for the first time. She hadn't even greeted him. If they were any lesser person, the kids would've jumped, forgetting she was even there. These children, however, had been around each other long enough to find her quiet presence and sudden comments on a conversation a part of their everyday occurrence.

Though Mitsuhiko still stiffened slightly, surprised her voice came from so close behind him. He was much too obvious, Conan observed.

He turned around, shooting her annoyed look. "Of course not."

They walked for some time, the kids excitedly chatting about a substitute teacher they would be having today, Haibara staying her usual, quiet self and only seldom giving her input, and Conan staring off into space, simply enjoying the morning.

He started as an object appeared in his line of vision, almost stumbling and mentally cursing at the slight sting in his back as the muscles there stretched. He followed the hand, which led to a smirking Haibara, then back again, curious of what she had to offer him.

It was a pack of crackers.

She dropped the item and his hand automatically came up to snatch it before it fell. He stared at it in confusion.

"I forgot to bring a get-well gift the last time we visited you, so I'm giving you this instead." She replied airily and closed her eyes, the perfect picture of 'am-I-not-considerate' radiating off of her.

He could almost feel the sweatdrop forming as he brought his hand back by his side again, cradling the small packet. He would put it in the bag later, when it wouldn't hurt so much to open it with both hands and aggravate his back further.

"Kudo-kun," Haibara's quiet voice drew his attention, his eyes widening a fraction at her use of that name in public. It was highly uncharacteristic of her. "Are you really alright?"

To some, her cold, piercing gaze would've been disturbing, leaving them thinking nothing but the truth should pass their lips. However, to Conan, to Shinichi, who'd spent so much time with her in the same predicament (and who also had a similar look in his arsenal) it affected him for barely a moment.

"I said it already, didn't I?" he drawled with his most impressive annoyed expression. "I'm perfectly fine."

The school was by now already in view, the sound of grade-schoolers screaming and laughing high in the air. Ayumi, Genta and Mitsuhiko shot forwards in a bout of childish energy, wanting to hurry and have some fun too before the bell rung. The two not-children followed them at a more sedate pace, knowing it would be quite awhile before class began, since they'd somehow all made an early entrance that morning.

As they crossed the school gates, expertly avoiding stray balls and other children too caught in their game to give them much attention, each of them were occupied by their own thoughts. Parting their ways, Conan heading for the Detective Boy's usual hangout and Haibara to wherever she went before class began, the girl gave him one last dry glance, shrugging nonchalantly.

"Could've fooled me."

The teenager-turned-boy didn't reply.

* * *

_**A/N:** Phew, just in time! Honestly, I don't know why it took me so long (schoolwork might have been it), but I'm glad I made it for my own deadline. I feel so guilty for procrastinating. I'll try to have the next chapter up in a week's time. I'll really try._

_I'm going to refer to shrunken!Shinichi as Conan, because I learned to know him as that. Kaito will of course call him however he wants in his perspective, but for clarity's sake in normal perspective Conan stays Conan and Shinichi stays Shinichi. Or something like that :P_

_Okay, PICTURE TIME! Okay, a RL friend fo mine drew this really cool comic (on paper, not digitally o.O) for chapter Two. It has few modifications with my permission, but it's great nonetheless: http(two dots)//bbfan77(dot)deviantart(dot)com/art/Raven-Tantei-kun-illustrated-162285863_  
_And I made a close up of Conan's wings, so you know how they look like: http(two dots)//teah-no-kitsune(dot)deviantart(dot)com/art/Raven-Wings-162592076_  
_Hope you like! ^^_

**Next: **The day has only just begun. And Conan's sense of 'something's not right' never failed him. Things do indeed happen.**  
**

_(See the button down there? How about pressing it to see what it can do? :D)_


	4. Doves

**_A/N:_**_ Sorry for the delay, I had a reason. My stationary PC broke on the night I wanted to finish this, then my dad pulled all-nighters on two of the three nights I wanted to pull them too, and of course my mom was frothing at the mouth at the amount of time I spent on dad's laptop because I got absolutely no schoolwork done. I've also split the chapter again, since the word count somehow got over 8k, but hey, that means that next weekend there will be no delay since I have a pre-written one! :)_

**_Title:_**_ Raven, Tantei-kun?  
_**_Author:_**_ Teah no kitsune  
_**_Warnings:_**_ None, I guess._

* * *

**_Chapter 4: Doves_**

* * *

In a tiny part of the schoolyard, leaning against the walls of the building with a mid-sized bush partially hiding him from general view, a small bespectacled boy sighed in relief.

This place, this small sanctuary concealed in the shadows, it has been dubbed as the Shonen Tantei Dan's usual hangout. What they didn't know, however, was that before everything else, it had been Shinichi's and Ran's.

He could still clearly remember their childhood days (his first time around), when both of them had met at the hangout daily, either to be by themselves or simply by habit. They would chat and bicker about everything and nothing, forgetting about the other kids and the numerous games and fun Elementary had to offer at the time, instead choosing to simply be in the other's company. And then they would start in surprise when the bell rung, only to panic and hurry to class. And the next day they'd come back.

It was only because of him that the kids had discovered this place at all, having found him here brooding after missing his presence for too long of a time.

Funny, that was how Ran found him too, after some bullies had really gotten to him and he'd needed time to think.

The rough texture of the school's wall pressed against his back, shooting small tendrils of pain through his being, yet he reveled in the cold that accompanied it. It had a soothing effect on the invisible injury on his back, only able to be felt, not seen.

Around him small coos resounded cordially. He opened one eye, both of which he had closed to enjoy the cold seeping through his clothes more (he would have to move away soon, or at least find something warmer to sit on if he wanted to stay there – Ran would not be happy if he caught a cold from sitting on concrete) and observed the small assembly of doves. This part of the building was notorious for the small bits (and some not so small bits) of food that the children threw out of the window, which all teachers disapproved of (but couldn't do anything against it). It had been only a matter of time before the doves occasionally residing on the school's rooftop discovered the well of food, which of course only resulted in more food from children admiring the 'pretty birds'.

He watched as one or two of them waddled over to stand in front of him, eyeing the item in his hand with curious looks (well, if a bird could ever posses that kind of emotion). He raised an eyebrow, eyes falling to the pack of crackers that he still held despite having deposited his bag at his feet some time ago.

…That actually gave him an idea. Ignoring the pain for just this one moment, he stood up as quickly as he could, brought the bag under him and sat back down. There, now Ran couldn't scold him anymore for _that_, he thought smugly.

A few more coos brought his attention back to the doves staring at him expectantly, making him sigh in silent resignation. He opened the packet with slow movements and threw a handful of them at the gathered party. The avians latched onto as if their lifeline depended upon it, hurrying to reach the small treats before their companions. Conan chuckled as one dove snatched a cracker just before another one could grab it; those birds knew just what to look for. He was sure years of children throwing them snacks from packages taught them where only the freshest of treats came from.

'_Ah, well,'_ he thought as he threw another handful, some of the doves taking to the air at the sudden movement before plunging back down. _'It's not like Haibara will mind the use of her get-well gift.'_

He closed his eyes again, leaning his head against the wall and turning it upwards in the light breeze that could still be felt in the spacious alcove. Birds chirped in the distance, along with the loud coos of doves as they chased each other around, and the leaves of the bush beside him pleasantly rustled in his ears. He reveled in the tranquility of it all, of this one moment in time. So peaceful…

He almost shuddered as the hairs on the back of his neck suddenly stood on end, his whole posture stiffening as he felt someone's gaze trailing over him. His eyes snapped open, his senses on high alert. He looked around himself as best as he could without moving a muscle in his body. He didn't dare move, didn't dare alert them of the knowledge that he knew they were watching him…

Watching him the same way as on his way to school, he suddenly realized.

His eyes swept over the alcove, searching and failing to find any dark presences lurking around the corner. The mid-sized bush was hiding him from general view of anyone in the schoolyard, so it couldn't be any of the children, and the high sakura tree at the mouth of it rendered anyone from watching him from some of the nearby apartment buildings. But then, where could…

Up!

His eyes snapped in the direction of the rooftop, almost expecting to see the movement of a figure hastily retreating over the edge, but… nothing. A quick check of all the school windows with a good look at his current position showed the same results.

Yet the feeling failed to fade. His whole body was frozen still by now, screaming at him to get away, but at the same time stay and act as if he knew nothing. But if not left or right, and if not up...

A small coo at his feet almost visibly startled him, making him look…

Down?

Indeed, on the ground, right at his feet, there stood a dove. It was a dark grey, not a standard color, with a small white patch at what would be its wings and tail. It cooed at him and flapped its feathers as it met his gaze.

But Conan's mind only filed the appearance of the dove later. At that moment in time, he'd been transfixed (and wary) of the rather _creepily_ intense stare it was giving him. And no, there was no other word befitting it but _creepy_. It stared at him, unblinking, never wavering, as if assessing him. Conan felt like he was being positively scrutinized by it.

That was not the normal behavior of a bird.

It was creepy.

And then the moment passed, and the bird turned its head to look the other way, cooing softly. Conan blinked, shaking himself out of his stupor as his body relaxed. Then it almost stiffened again as realization came over him. He looked back down at the dove, watching it as it, once again, turned its intense gaze back on him. It left a tingling sensation in the back of his mind.

It was like the dove was looking through him, right into his soul. The not-child knew that was ridiculous, but the bird's eyes had such intensity and focus in them that he couldn't help but register it on his sixth sense.

"You… you were the one watching me, right? This morning, too." He murmured uncertainly.

He felt stupid for talking to a bird, let alone asking it a question like that, but it gave a soft coo, as if confirming his guess. It waddled a bit on the spot, fluffing its feathers up before it locked its orange eyes with the pack of crackers he was holding.

"I…" the boy began, then faltered. "I-I don't know what to say." He finished.

'_Getting all paranoid __over a bird – yeah, now I'm really starting to turn crazy.'_

The dark grey dove gave another coo, this one a little louder, almost like a demand. The boy blinked again, and promptly decided disregarding this event, and the one of this morning entirely would be the best course of action. It just wasn't worth it to obsess over a bird anyway. He took out three crackers and threw one in front of the dove, almost expecting it to defy the normal behavior of an avian once again by doing something wholly different.

It didn't disappoint him. It glanced at the treat, blinking two times, before disregarding it completely and focusing its gaze back on him. Or rather, the crackers in his hand.

Conan raised an eyebrow. "You want it from my hand?" he asked, dubiously holding it out in front of it, almost sure it would skitter away from the too close human appendage. Instead, it cooed in approval and bent over it, beak already busy eating the treats.

'_What a strange bird.'_ The not-child thought.

And then the dove did it again.

"H-hey!" He squawked as there were suddenly claws digging through the material of his jacket, surprised the dove had actually started _climbing_ up the sleeve, in the direction of his head.

'_It's gonna take my ear off!' _his panicked mind screamed.

He jerked his arm out, trying to dislodge the animal off it, but instead hissed in pain as his back burned at the movement. He really shouldn't have done that. He'd almost forgotten about it (he couldn't fathom why, it hurt almost constantly), but now he was painfully reminded. The bird faltered in its self-appointed quest of conquering the jacket sleeve, opening its wings wide to hold its balance better (and here Conan got a good view of the pure whiteness of the appendages compared to the rest of its body), before steadying itself and climbing the rest of its way up his arm.

The not-child closed his eyes, an instinctive reaction against a bird perching itself _on his shoulder_, in clear reach of pecking at them (and his nose, and his ears, and the skin on his face _generally_), shrinking in on himself, waiting for the bird to strike. His back only burned further at the pull of muscles.

…One moment passed. And two. And three.

Still nothing.

He stiffened as the avian leaned against him, almost expecting the long-awaited 'peck of doom', but it only grabbed a strand of his hair, cuddling up against his neck as it played with it.

Slowly, ever so slowly, he opened his eyes to stare at the bird, his mind blank and, for once, completely at a loss of _what the hell is going on_.

Soon enough coos were emitting from the bird, almost like contented purrs at the warmth of his body, and somehow, unwittingly, unconsciously, Conan found himself relaxing in turn. His shoulders slumped as tension left them, and his back leant against the wall again in sheer exhaustion of all the adrenaline he'd worked up since the start of the day. Add to that the insomnia keeping him up till the early hours of morning for the past week, his back giving him a hard time at his _every_ twitch and motion, and his worry of _oh god the thief knows…_

He found his eyes closing by themselves slowly, the lids growing heavier with every passing moment. The warmth of the avian body against his neck, on his shoulder, seeped comfortingly through his body, his soul, his _being_, and if he'd been more coherent of this fact he'd also noticed the pain in his back receding to be only barely more bearable, but he was so exhausted…

"…This feels nice… Thank you, Dove-san."

A coo and an affectionate cuddle were his only answer as his mind found itself in that blissful state of peaceful sleep. He didn't even stiffen at the bird's movement, somehow sensing it wouldn't harm him or try anything unexpected for a while. He was almost there, after _such _a long time…

"Conan-kun! Are you there?!"

The voice startled him awake, his body surging forwards in surprise and (sadly, he realized) startling the dark gray dove into flight. The boy was momentarily mesmerized by the breath-taking sight of the pure white wings spanning from the dark gray body, before it vanished over the rooftop.

As if on cue, the other doves still searching around for food followed it not a moment later, startled by the shrill voice and movement of their only human companion. They flew up in unison, their wings beating as they formed an almost-cloud of wings and feathers and gray and white – until they were up there in the air, almost out of view.

Conan couldn't help but smile at the magnificent view. _So free…_ He had to halt himself before his smile turned into a scowl, reminding himself that dreaming was good, dreaming was acceptable, as long as it never actually happened.

It was impossible, after all.

"_What are__ you, Tantei-kun?"_

Thankfully, a distraction came in the form of Ayumi, the girl peaking her head around the corner. "Ah, they flew off! And I wanted to see them so much!"

"That would be because of your yell, Ayumi-chan. Birds often get scared into flight by sudden motions or loud voices." Mitsuhiko supplied as he came into view. Genta and surprisingly Ai were not far behind him.

"But- I didn't mean for them to fly off…" Ayumi whispered.

The freckled boy, seeing the turmoil he brought forth (and the threatening gesture Genta made for upsetting Ayumi), immediately started defending her. "Ah, d-don't worry about it, Ayumi-chan, I'm sure you'll see them another time!"

Observing the antics of the three real children with a detached air, Ai turned her gaze to Conan, raising an eyebrow at the opened pack of crackers, almost as if she knew what he'd used it for and wondering _'Did you really do that?'_

The not-child rolled his eyes, disregarding her look with practiced ease, and addressed the three children still trying to get their earlier argument sorted out. "What are you lot doing here? I thought you'd be staying at the front today." If his voice had an annoyed quality to it, he ignored it.

And his back was starting to aggravate him again. He contributed it to the absence of the wall's coldness and the small scraps he acquired from moving too fast against it.

"Oi oi! Be grateful Conan, since we were so nice to come warn you about the bell going off soon!" Genta bellowed.

Ayumi nodded her head vehemently. "Hai, we saw that Conan-kun hadn't joined us yet even if class is starting soon, so we came to get you since you look like you forgot!"

The small detective blinked, his expression turned annoyed again. "Ba-" he cut himself off, mentally reminding himself that this was not Ran, in another time and the same place, but three small children not yet accustomed to teasing insults. It wouldn't do to upset them, especially since they came to the 'secret hangout' with the best of intentions. And Haibara would have his hide.

Instead he sighed heavily, as if pouring out all his frustration (at his injury, at his turmoil, at the warmth on his shoulder being gone) and plastered a fake smile on his face. "Thanks guys. We should go back to the front if the bell is going to go off soon."

As if on cue, the sound of the warning bell resounded through the yard and the kids – the real kids – rushed off with surprised gasps and urgency. Conan picked up his bag, thankful yet again it went over his shoulder instead of on his back, and turned around to find himself alone. He spent barely a moment staring at the spot Haibara had been earlier, before shrugging (and wincing) as he made his own way to the entrance.

She wasn't fooled, she knew something was up. But then again, something was always up with him and he knew the miniature scientist had long ago given up trying to discern all his moods and secrets, instead opting for simply giving him the look of I-know-something-you-know-too-and-won't-tell-me-but-since-I'm-nice-I'll-just-let-you-squirm and ignoring whatever it was completely.

Girls. Sometimes he just couldn't understand them.

* * *

When lunch time rolled around, the quiet snickers of Conan's peers were replaced by the loud chatter of friends and classmates.

Because of the sleep he'd been lacking, Conan had somehow found the voice of the teacher imparting on them the knowledge of Elementary school extremely somnolent, even with his back hurting from the upright position he held. He'd found himself falling asleep at least two times, each time with Haibara nudging him and sending a jolt of agony that had him instantly awake. The other kids found it hilarious, especially since on the second try his hand had slipped and he'd rammed his head face first into the desk. Even though the sound it produced had been loud, Kobayashi-sensei hadn't seemed like she heard it, so he'd been spared any lectures from her.

Currently he was sitting at the ledge of the window, leaning his head on the opened part and tiredly trying to keep his eyes from closing. The position he was in allowed his back to not touch any walls, one leg resting on the ledge and the other on the floor. He was glad for that, since it was starting to really aggravate him (more than normal) from moving so much all day.

At least when he was 'sick' he hadn't had to move past the apartment's door, Ran being the overbearing big sister she thought she was and commanding him to either stay in bed or on the couch.

The students of class 1-B left him alone to brood by himself, probably still under the impression he was sick and could maybe infect them (he certainly looked that way), and the three that considered themselves his friends (he supposed they really were, to Edogawa Conan at least)… well, probably Haibara had talked them into keeping distance, reassuring them that nothing was wrong with Edogawa-kun and he just needed time for himself.

Damn, that aftermath of his stupid mistake (even if he knew he'd have died the other way) was really getting to him. He almost wished for something… anything to alleviate it…

He started in surprise as the sound of wings flapping came almost too close for comfort, jerking his head back just in time to hinder a bird from landing on his head. The avian righted itself quickly, its white wings beating furiously before it found a perch on the opened ledge instead, just at his shoulder level.

It cooed.

Conan stared.

He opened his mouth to say something, then closed it back with a snap.

It was the dove from before.

…Huh.

He hastily looked around, hoping no one had seen an avian land practically in the room. The children continued in their chatter and lunch as if nothing happened (even Haibara hadn't once glanced in his direction), so he supposed the event had went unnoticed.

He barely twitched at all when he felt claws digging through his shirt, instead choosing to lift his head a bit so the dove could get comfortable in the place between his shoulder and neck. He briefly wondered why he felt so resigned to the bird's apparent need of affection, but that thought quickly faded as he felt the warmth of it seeping through him, into him, causing him to lean his back against the wall behind him in silent bliss.

The dove started slowly cooing in his ear, almost as if chattering about everything and nothing at the same time. It was like the avian had an aura around it, warm and benign and a salve for his aching body, lulling him to sleep…

His head dropped lower, not enough to bother the chattering dove but enough to hide it from anyone that might have peered at him from within of the room. To them, it would look like he was only resting, no bi-colored avian sitting on his person.

He didn't know how long he'd half-lied there and if anyone had approached him as he slept, but he abruptly awoke once he felt a strand of his hair released from a beak and the almost familiar weight (Hadn't it been only two times now that he'd met the bird? Why did it feel so welcoming then?) leaving his shoulder. Small flaps of wings reached his ears and he opened his eyes just in time to see the bird land in a nearby tree in the yard.

Why…

"Conan-kun, class is about to start!" The voice came from his desk, where the Detective Boys had gathered and were obviously calling him over. He yawned, grateful for the small amount of sleep he'd gotten, and hopped of the ledge in a bout of child-like energy. A small jolt of pain reminded him to take it easier. But nevertheless, it was smaller than usual.

Maybe it was finally starting to fade.

Trotting over to his desk, Ayumi's eyes brightened at his approach. "Ai-chan was right! Conan-kun really does look better after being left alone." Then her face saddened somewhat. "Is Conan-kun… really happier when we aren't around?"

"No, of course not," the boy amended immediately, knowing better than to make enemies with Genta and Mitsuhiko over Ayumi's happiness. They were overprotective as is. "I think I just needed some sleep. I haven't gotten enough while home, since Occhan had been snoring the whole night away."

The kids giggled at the thought, instantly believing the story. Yet it was also partially true; if it weren't for the Snoring Engine, he'd have at least a few more hours to sleep, despite his impairment. He had to marvel at their innocence though, the naiveté their age still permeated them with. Sometimes he wished he'd be that innocent again, or at least…

He glanced at Haibara, but the girl was determinedly ignoring their conversation, busy scribbling something here and there in her notebook. From his vantage point Conan could see there were formulas and words that had absolutely no business doing in a seven-year-old girl's notebook, so he concluded she must've had another break-through of hers. That wasn't anything worth mentioning though, since nowadays she had one or two occasionally, and they always proved to be a false alarm.

He shook his head. It was futile to hope for any innocence at all, especially for somebody of Haibara's and his caliber. They'd been through too much to come out as anything remotely innocent, no matter how well they acted.

"Sensei is coming." Ai's quiet voice broke into their conversation.

They didn't question how she knew that, they simply followed her silent warning to get back to their seats and settle down. She had the power to do that.

Whispers broke out as two silhouettes came to stand in front of the door, their general forms visible through the glass part of it. The first was surely the substitute teacher they would be having for the last subject of the day, while the other was most likely Kobayashi-sensei, giving the other some last minute advice before she departed to visit her mother in the hospital. She had apparently come down with one illness or another, and Kobayashi-sensei had been allowed to leave her job earlier for a longer visit. She still felt guilty for leaving her class alone though, so she took it on herself to impart every bit of her knowledge to her substitute, wanting him to do as great a job as her.

The second shadow then left, and the first one turned the knob, opening the door.

Classmates collectively drew in their breath, as if expecting someone entirely new and unfamiliar to come through, only to groan in disappointment as the person entered the room.

Conan rolled his eyes at the display, using his hand to prop his head up. Did they really expect someone other than Kobayashi-sensei's usual substitute to walk through the door? It was a ridiculous assumption to make, especially as the man (a good friend of their sensei) had been substituting a number of times already.

Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed Haibara's brows furrowing momentarily before smoothing out again in her neutral expression. His own eyes narrowed at that, filing the reaction to the back of his mind

The class went by almost like any other, with the exception of the different teacher, and soon Conan found, like all the other times, his eyes slowly closing. He'd thought he'd gotten enough sleep during lunch break, but apparently it was not to be. Somehow the voice of the teacher seemed calming, the detective's whole body relaxing in its sleep induced daze and just letting it follow the tide. He almost smiled at the warm feeling of the sun rays hitting his back and soothing it, numbing the pain to almost nothing…

"Edogawa-kun, I know my lesson might be boring for you, but I would expect you to at least not fall asleep during it." The voice came from just above him, and the boy jerked awake to stare at his sensei wide-eyed.

Busted.

Damn.

However, the stern gaze looking down upon him softened. "Yet, Kobayashi-san has told me to take it easy on you, since it seems like you are still under the effect of that backlash you experienced. But… I take it from now on you'll at least take care to stay awake, hmm?"

The boy nodded, quickly agreeing with the man. His face burned, and his whole posture probably screamed 'small kid getting punishment' but he determinedly stayed in that pose until the teacher turned around, walking back to his desk and continuing on with the class. Amongst the snickers and giggles of his classmates, he turned his head to glare at a smirking Haibara.

"_You._" Somehow he managed to make that hissed word sound like an insult. "Why didn't you warn me?"

"Why should I? I've done my part over the day, you should have learned from it. Even Kobayashi-sensei isn't that ignorant to miss a student of hers sleeping in class. You needed to learn a lesson."

The detective glared at her, rolling his eyes in exasperation before slumping in his chair with a huff. Wide awake from the heart-attack he'd almost got earlier, he decided to follow the lesson for once and act his age.

As the substitute wrote another word on the board in big hiragana, Conan's eyes narrowed.

_Interesting._

_

* * *

_

_**A/N: **Now you've met my one and only ever OC: Dove-san! Love the bird, ever since I made the design awhile ago. I wonder if it's weird that I feel disrespectul for putting anything other than 'san' as a suffix? _

_As you may have noticed, there are many descriptions on the interactions of doves; I've taken up to Dove Watching, which is actual dove watching on the town square, with occasional feedings in-between, so I learned a bit about their behavior. I also had a parrot that liked to either eat my hair or bite my ear, so that is explained too. There's a lot of mystery here, how this and how that and yet no answers - it will continue on in the next chapter too. After that though, some things will be explained. :)_

_I'd really apperciate it if you reviewed, said what you thought of my style and the story so far, what you think will happen or what you'd really like to happen (who knows, maybe I'll include it if it makes no difference to the plot), or maybe, if something irks you, tell me how to improve myself. _

**Next**: A confrontation is in order. That's all I'll say.


	5. Confrontation

**_A/N:_**_ Yes I know, the chapter is so very imaginative considering the last 'Next', no? So with no delays, the new chapter is here, and the grueling three-chapter day is finally coming to its end. _

**_Title:_**_ Raven, Tantei-kun?  
_**_Author:_**_ Teah no kitsune  
_**_Warnings:_**_ None._

* * *

**_Chapter 5: Confrontation_****_

* * *

_**

The final bell ringing was like music to the ears of the grade-schoolers eagerly awaiting it since… well, the moment they entered the building. Conan could never get why the rush for the exit was so important. After all, it didn't matter if you went out elbowing your way through the throng of children ready to stomp over you, or simply waited a few moments for the hallways to clear so you could make a quiet and clean escape.

He'd told the others they should go home without him, since Ran had offered to come pick him up after her school let out. It would take some time for her to get there, but Conan could wait.

Or, more accurately, he _had_ to wait. Ran had given him that kind smile, that wasn't really so kind as promising all sorts of punishments if he decided to go home without her. The girl was overprotective and wanted to see her little brother was indeed alright after a full day spent moving with the 'backlash' still acting up.

He brought the strap of the bag over his shoulder, letting it hang by his side as he exited the classroom and slowly made his way in the direction of the school gates. He shifted slightly as he felt a familiar sting coming back from between his shoulder blades, not as intense as that morning, but still able to be felt. He thought he'd gotten rid of it already, it had barely bothered him through the last class. Maybe it was because he hadn't moved that much while sitting, only using his hand in the minimal effort of completing the schoolwork he was assigned to do. He'll just have to deal with it.

By now he was already standing by the gates, hands tucked into the pockets of his khaki pants, a bored half-lidded expression on his face. Ran wouldn't be coming any time soon, since her school had just let out. Now what to do…

Almost like drawn to it, his head started turning to his right.

There, a small distance away, a small wooden bench resided, conveniently situated in the shade of a tree looming over the wall separating the schoolyard from the street. A person sat on it leisurely.

Yet, it wasn't the woman (for she was obviously a woman, he could see the curved line of her chest from his position) that caught his attention. It was the doves.

Around the bench thirty or so birds dove and waddled, hopping here and there, scrambling for the pieces of food the woman that had obviously fed them. She had short brown hair and fair skin, probably the age he would be if he wasn't shrunk, the perfect picture of ordinary just radiating of off her. She was even wearing a knee-length skirt and hardly eye-catching sweater.

His eyes narrowed, observing the avians at her feet, and he found himself determinedly stepping in the direction of the assembly.

Soon he was standing in front of the bench, his steps momentarily startling the colorful gray, black and white doves into short-lived flight, staring at the woman before him. Said woman had closed eyes, for all intents and purposes just enjoying the fine afternoon.

Conan wasn't fooled. It was time for a confrontation.

"You were impersonating our substitute sensei from earlier, weren't you? I bet you've been following me the whole day, even watching me this morning on my way to school." He started calmly. "What do you have to say for yourself, Kaitou Kid-san?"

The woman opened one eye to peer at him, the violet of their depths even more ascertaining him that they were contact lenses (since he'd met no person with an eye color such as _that_ before), her whole posture otherwise still relaxed, as if she was indeed for all the world looking at a unfamiliar boy that decided to crash on her peaceful rest.

"Oooh? Why would you believe I'm Kid-san, boya?" She asked in a perfect soprano. If Conan, if Shinichi had been any other person, he would have faltered in his deduction and wonder at the probability of it all. Really, the notorious thief following just him around and having nothing better to do but stalk small detectives?

But he knew better than that.

"I felt you watching me this morning, that I know." Even if it was mixed with the creepy stare of a strangely sharp-eyed dove that he'd grown used to, there had still been more than one person watching him. "And your handwriting back in class had been slightly off. Passable enough to remain undetected, yet still there. Also, Kobayashi-sensei has told us a few days before that the man had left for a trip to Kyoto, so for him to suddenly appear out of thin air and offer himself as a replacement right when our sensei needed a day off… It's pretty obvious once you get all the clues together."

Pleased and guttural coos of satisfied doves gobbling down food were the only sounds within their earshot, everything else falling back into an unimportant blur. There were only the two of them, everything else disregarded, and Conan liked it that way, because if the disguised Kid decided to make a spectacular escape right then and there, he would be at least able to deter him slightly, as focused as his attention was on him.

"Interesting theory you have there, boya." She pointed dramatically at herself, as if offended by the very idea. "But, why would I, of all people, be a thief in disguise?" She crossed her legs, a typical gesture a woman would do, but Conan's eyes sharpened at the movement.

"Your doves." He said, nudging his foot in their direction and causing a few of them to skitter in fright.

The woman cocked her head in interest.

"Birds get easily frightened into flight by sudden motions or loud voices," The boy repeated Mitsuhiko's earlier statement. "Yet, during the whole time, even when your crossed your legs, they remained undisturbed. Such a level of familiarity speaks of great trust and more than a bit of training, which would mean you've been spending quite a bit of quality time with them."

He pulled his hands out of his pockets, just so he could be in reach of his dart-watch if the situation so required it. "And, frankly, I don't remember ever seeing you around here feeding birds, so your presence must be fairly new to this neighborhood, and to the batch of doves surrounding this school. Give up the act, Kaitou Kid-san, you've been found out."

For a moment, the woman gazed at him, still with that look that spoke 'I'll humor this boy I just randomly met'. Just a moment. And then a familiar smirk slowly stretched across her face, making the boy unconsciously tense and ready for an attack.

"My, my," The voice changed, becoming more husky and definitely manlier, much more familiar, just so Conan could feel a small bit of victory at the absolute truth of his deduction. Then it returned back to the soprano of a young woman. "To think my disguise has been found out, it seems I will have to work quite a bit on it from now on."

"Don't flatter me, I know you made those mistakes on purpose. You know better than to watch for too long after all, and the handwriting, while unintentional, would have gone unnoticed if you hadn't taken the time-" _'And pleasure probably,'_ he thought sardonically. "-to make me focus more on your lesson."

"Ah, yes," The man-in-a-woman's-disguise drawled. "The infamous sixth sense you seem to posses. Quite remarkable, I must say. Is that a trait of your… condition?"

Kid's eyes watched him as his eyes darkened at the word. His hands clenched into fists tightly, so tightly he would be lucky if only crescent marks remained instead of small wounds. He gritted his teeth, his whole body tensing, and regarded the suddenly quiet magician with eyes the color of ice chips.

"_Never_," he ground out, his voice laden with something that definitely drew all Kid's focus to him. "Never refer to that incident again."

"Why?"

The question was so simple, and yet there were so many answers that Conan, Shinichi, couldn't even begin to fathom. He didn't know how to even voice all those, how to reply to the question without descending into a long talk of just why it was such a mistake, such a sham to show those, those…

Yet one word covered it all.

"It's illogical."

Unnatural, impossible, shouldn't exist, against every belief of sensible and probable, _nonexistent_.

"When you have eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth."

He let himself barely start at the use of the famous quote, barely act surprised that Kaito Kid, of all people, had said it. He retaliated as best as he could, the cold anger seeping through his veins. "Yet, while impossible, probable doesn't even begin to cover the truth." What did that thief know about him, anyway? "And improbable is. _not_. logical."

He was sure the thief had by now realized what he meant. Illogical meant unexplainable, transcendent, something that detectives _never did. _And to a detective like him, the sheer fact that he was someone, _something _that fit into that criteria, and that there was a possibility that there were other impossibilities, just like him… it must have been a hard blow.

But…

"It's who you are, Tantei-kun."

"No, it's _what_ I am."

The thief shook his head sorrowfully.

"What is the difference between those even?"

His eyes narrowed, the answer delivered in a quiet and hard voice, speaking of the certainty of the matter. "It's not important _what_ I am, as long as I know _who_ I am. And, I will _keep_ it that way."

He held his eyes locked with the false violet ones of the thief, daring him to say anything against his resolve.

"And what are the consequences of that choice?"

Like he would tell him.

"That doesn't concern you."

And in that one moment of silence that followed, followed and seemed to stretch on forever, Conan thought he'd won the argument with the other.

He wasn't sure why the thief had deemed it necessary to follow him around, keep watch on him and preach him about his own problem (a problem that hurt in more ways than one, the most obvious one evident as he shifted slightly to alleviate it in his tenseness), but he _knew_ what he was going to do with it. He'd done it the first time around, and it had gone right.

He'd do it the same this time too, even if it would prove harder with the slightly different circumstances involved.

He knew what to do and the thief and whatever his reason was for seeking out the detective could do nothing against it.

And then a smirk, dimmed down by the seriousness of the atmosphere, lit up again upon that face.

"Does it?" A click of a tongue, as if disappointed the detective thought so little of him. "Well then, it is my deepest regret to tell you that I have already appointed myself the task of helping you," he cut off the detective's remark with a wave of his hand, suddenly causing all the doves to take flight. The small not-child was momentarily blinded by the bodies and feathers overtaking his vision, only able to hear the voice of their owner permeating the loud flaps in his ear. "And I mean help you my way, Kudo-kun."

The doves took to the sky, leaving the food behind on their master's wish and taking with them the few that weren't of their batch, flapping and beating their wings as they disappeared in the distance. The small space the shade of the tree provided for the bench suddenly seemed bare, the scattered corns and pieces of bread only magnifying the feeling.

Kid stood up from the bench, still in his late-teen-girl disguise, and looked on in the distance. And despite his relaxed posture, his perfect Pokerface, Conan could see the resolve, the hardened eyes that attested to the fact that he _would _follow through with his self-appointed task, and Conan could do nothing against it.

And the boy was now really tired, after a day as productive as this one, and he found his own stubbornness crumpling, if only to get rid of the headache it caused him.

"Suit yourself."

They both understood the secret meaning.

'_But it won't help you any.'_

Didn't mean they wouldn't try.

"So," the soft soprano drew his attention. This time it was playful, an obvious sign all serious conversation had come to an end, and Conan unwillingly found himself tensing again, ready to use his dart-watch if the thief tried anything with him.

The other, however, just smiled mischievously, as if laughing at an inside joke only he could understand. It made Conan all the more uncomfortable.

"So?"

The smile stretched into a grin. "Got a new friend?"

It took a few moments for the not-child to make sense of the statement. Okay, maybe it even took Kid's finger pointing at his left pant to get it. The dove from before was clutching at it with its claws, peering up at him with those sharp eyes.

He almost sweat-dropped. What the…?

'…_What is wrong with this bird?'_

"Hmm, I don't really know. He's always been acting somewhat strangely, even back in his nest. Kept watching the others instead of playing with them. Weird really." Apparently his thought had been said aloud, since the thief's grin only widened. "Kind of like you actually, Tantei-kun~"

Conan really wanted to kick him right now. He doubted he'd be able to run fast with a skirt like that, but then again with Kid you never knew – maybe the thief would find it funny if the wind blew the skirt a little too high for the small (and small was in this instance an advantage he definitely wouldn't want to exploit) teenager-turned-boy. Ugh, that brought forth images he didn't want to imagine, and the boy shook his whole body to get his mind out of the gutter.

The shudder brought his attention back to the dove at his pant leg, which suddenly decided it would be better if it climbed up to its usual spot. Well, it _was_ quickly becoming a usual spot.

He could feel Kid's gaze as the dove slowly ascended to his shoulders with the help of its claws and Conan's hand that helped it up. When it finally settled itself, the familiar warmth once again seeping though the spot between neck and shoulder, the boy turned his head just in time to see the woman, the man behind the woman, smiling kindly at the display.

"It never showed this attitude to any of the kids I showed it off to." He said, glancing to meet Conan's eyes. "Like it?"

He didn't know how to respond to that. "It's… nice, I guess."

Somehow that felt like he was signing a contract he didn't know anything about. Kid's widening smile only proved it more.

He wanted to further inquire about that, but the dove on his shoulder suddenly shook itself, wadded a few steps away from his neck, and took to the air. The display was as breathtaking as the first time, the pure white wings making the span of it seem longer, and the white tail just adding to the effect. To Conan that combination of dark gray and white seemed even more graceful than the pure white Kid used.

The cause of the avian's flight, however, was soon found out to be none other than the person Conan had totally forgotten about.

"Conan-kun! Conan-kun, where are you?"

"Ah, I'm over here, Ran-neechan!" Conan called, waving his hand for good measure to the figure standing in front of the school gates a distance away. He put it back down once he saw his best friend making her way over to him.

He turned around, expecting the spot where Kid would have stood to be empty, only to be surprised by the fact that he _was _still there, and, furthermore, _winked_ at Conan in a way that left him with a feeling of dread in the pit of his stomach.

Oh God, please don't tell me would…

He would.

The whole way back to the agency, the small not-child brooded and sulked, even whined at one point for Ran to hurry so they could finally eat because he ate nothing in school and he was _hungry_. Of course, he blushed furiously at all the excuses he tried to pull, one more pathetic than the other, aware of the amused stare that Ran's 'new friend' was boring him with.

Why? Why did the thief have to torture him so much? Didn't he know what this meant? Didn't he know Ran was reputed for her loyalty, reputed for keeping a close bond to those she considered friends? Now Ran will of course want to meet with her 'friend' again, want to nurture that bond, and of _course_ want to take him with her to meet her friend also and _oh god_ he wanted to bash his head against a wall in his plight…

And now they were taking a longer detour home, just so they could accompany 'Shienko' (and _God_ did Conan want to laugh at the name, or just hit the thief for it) to her house that was conveniently situated near Beika. Conan doubted their destination was Kid's real home, especially as she'd apologized for not being able to invite them in since she lived with her sick uncle that needed peace and rest, but maybe he would at least get a glimpse of one of Kid's hideouts.

Maybe. It wasn't worth the humiliation of the two girls (one not so much feminine as 'she'd' like to present 'herself') giggling over his cuteness and child-like behavior. 'Shienko' had even chided Ran that she'd have to be careful on how much sugar or caffeine he took. That one earned him such a glare behind Ran's back that he was _sure_ he saw a small cringe.

Nobody messed with his morning coffee, dammit.

It was with relief that the small detective parted from the disguised criminal, happy to finally get rid of all the annoying remarks. It had been an exhausting day and all Conan wished, even if it was only afternoon, was to curl up in his futon and fall asleep. Maybe it was even better this way, since it meant the Snoring Engine wouldn't be there to ruin it for him.

Out of the corner of his eye, as Ran and him steadily increased the distance between the apartment complex Kid had claimed as his 'home', Conan saw the false female slip inside the door. He wondered if the thief would sneak out by a back entrance or really go to an apartment he'd bought there.

"Conan-kun?" His caretaker said. He turned his head to look up at her, his hand clasped in hers, and saw her giving him a slightly disapproving expression. "Conan-kun, I hope you behave better next time Shienko-chan meets up with us, because I really wouldn't like leaving you at home because of it."

She watched as the eyes of the small child at her side slowly began to widen, his face beginning to flush as he no doubt began to recollect his behavior from before, analyzing it bit by bit and finding all the flaws within it.

And she was right. He hung his head down, his face red to the tips of his ears, ashamed as he finally _noticed_ the utterly childish temper tantrum he'd displayed. In his quest to get rid of Kid he'd somehow crossed the lines of 'dignified' and descended into 'by all means' without noticing, and boy did he feel guilty for it. No doubt Ran was imagining how her new friend must be thinking about her, taking care of such a spoiled brat and doing nothing against it. Even if Conan was sure Kid would never do that, since he _knew _this was all a game and found it utmost entertaining, if nothing else, Ran didn't know that.

"I-I'm sorry Ran-neechan. I'm just really tired and I wanted to go sleep. I-I hadn't thought…"

The girl's softened at his sincere apology, not finding herself capable of scolding a child that had already learned its lesson. She placed her hand on his head, patting down the few strands that escaped the cowlick affectionately. "It's alright, Conan-kun. I just wanted you to know that sometimes you need to watch your attitude, but… I think you know that now."

Then, as if to make him feel better as they ascended the stairs to the apartment above the agency (how had they come back so quickly?) she patted him gently on the back for good measure, before letting go of his hand and entering their residence.

She didn't notice Conan tense up at the touch, nor his face twist into a grimace.

Hell, it didn't seem like _all_ of the pain had diminished, no matter how much he'd liked to think so.

The next half an hour seemed like a blur to him. He'd eaten whatever Ran had made, of that he was sure, and then somehow he'd managed to get ready for bed barely noticing it, his mind muddled from the events of the day and more than ready to shut down. As he had made his way from the bathroom to Kogoro's and his bedroom, bracing himself internally for the smell and the pain he would endure in his task of falling asleep, a noise made him stop in his tracks.

A coo.

He turned his head, almost unwillingly, to the window of the living room, some small part of him already anticipating what he would find, especially with the tingling now once again tickling at his senses.

The dove.

It watched him, blinked, ruffled its feathers up, waddled over to a part that was partially open, and gave him a _look_.

Despite his instincts telling him otherwise, the not-child approached the window per demand, mindful not to alert a busy Ran in the kitchen nearby, and opened it as silently as he could manage. As soon as there was enough space to squeeze through, the dove entered and latched onto the hand still holding the window open. Claws dug into the loose pajamas with a little more difficulty than normal, and Conan had to help the bird with his hands so it could make it to its usual spot without starting to flap its wings for balance.

"Stay quiet," he warned.

The dove didn't even coo its assent. Good.

The door of the bedroom was, for once, closed with a sigh of relief, instead of disgust at the alcoholic smell. He really needed to clean, especially if the dove planned on staying here a long time. Said avian gave a loud coo once it saw it was safe, but Conan hurried to shush it.

"No, you can't be too loud or Ran will hear, Dove-san, not to mention Occhan when he comes in to sleep." He chided it. Internally he wondered if his sanity had finally come to an end, but dismissed the thought as unimportant. "Got it?"

This time it wasn't a coo that answered him, but a small peck on his cheek. The beak was warm, contrary to the cold he'd been expecting, and it hadn't so much been painful as just reassuring.

Yawning, he laid down in the futon, mindful to not dislodge his companion unintentionally as he settled on the side opposite of the one the bird was resting on. He grimaced as he soon became aware that sleeping on his side just wasn't the same as on his stomach. He shifted again, trying to get rid of the ever present itch.

The weight on his shoulder left, and he opened one eye to see the bird hop down on the sheets beside his head. It ruffled its feathers up again, then settled down with its weight lightly leaning against his neck.

He snorted, accommodating to the new freedom of movement by lying on his stomach, mindful not to disturb the dove, and closed his eyes again. He took a deep breath, somehow the smell of the room seeming diminished by the scent of feathers coming from the avian curled up against him, and he found himself finally, finally for the first time in a long time, with the warmth of the dove that was almost like a bright aura, falling asleep.

* * *

**--Omake--**

He could feel Kid's gaze as the dove slowly ascended to his shoulders with the help of its claws and Conan's hand that helped it up. When it finally settled itself, the familiar warmth once again seeping though the spot between neck and shoulder, the boy turned his head just in time to see the woman, the man behind the woman, smiling kindly at the display.

"…"

"What?" The boy asked, somewhat unsure of the tightening of the thief's expression and the clasped hands coming up to his chest. Somehow it seemed familiar…

"Nothing, I just…"

Very familiar…

"It's just that, that…"

And suddenly it hit him.

"Oh , to hell with professional distance! Come here!"

And before Conan could even think of making a run for it, he was suddenly enveloped in a tight hug, his face pressed against an artificial bosom with the dove on his shoulders somehow managing to stay on.

As the thief holding him tightly only continued his chants of "Ohmygod, how cute, you are so _cute_!" Conan vowed to take revenge on him later. Screw not chasing the thief-in-a-skirt, he would kick him in the shins if it was the last thing he did.

…Was Kid wearing a perfume?

… A lemon scented one?

Seriously?

* * *

**Shien-ko - **Purple smoke - child

_**A/N:** And so we come to the end of this chapter that, if not split with the other two, would have equalled 12k. And to think this is just a simple story with no magnificient plot..._

_Err yes, about that. Just reminding those that read this as an oneshot, and informing those that started following it later: This fic isn't really some sort of epic story that will involve the org falling down, Shinichi's 'little' secret (the canon secret) being shown to the world and the story ending with everything solved and figured out. This was, due to popular demand, expanded and will be an expansion of Conan's 'condition', the main goal being to explain it better (Part One, ending in most likely two chapters) and improve his abysmal view on it (Part Two, the rest of the story). Just wanted to clear that up, so people don't complain about me leaving the canon plot of beating the Black Org unattended. However reality-breaking his secret is, there's no way it will affect his life outside of dealing with Kid, because Shin-chan just doesn't do flaunting secrets to the world. Thank you for your undestanding._

_Hope you liked the omake, it just popped into my head when I was writing the scene. And oh yes, another picture time! Aww, I have so much fanart! (remove the 'dot's):_  
_http(two dots)//dagras(dot)deviantart(dot)com/art/Conan-and-Dove-163643497_  
_http(two dots)//dagras(dot)deviantart(dot)com/art/Raven-Fanart-162622403_  
_http(two dots)//teah-no-kitsune(dot)deviantart(dot)com/art/A-Boy-and-his-Dove-163839539_

_And because it worked so well, I'll just copy this paragraph from now on: I really appreciate it if you reviewed, said what you thought of my style and the story so far, what you think will happen or what you'd really like to happen (who knows, maybe I'll include it if it makes no difference to the plot), or maybe, if something irks you, tell me how to improve myself. _

**Next:** Things are settling down. _Not_. Parents are omniscient, and they want a talk with Kaito.


End file.
